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If you listened to some experts you might believe that the only place to be is online but this isn’t true. Yes there are opportunities to make money online but it can be easier to cut through the noise when we do what others are not doing so today’s challenge is going to consider some offline marketing activities and tactics.

Build a database

Every marketing expert will tell you that you need to build a database of prospects and customers and who am I to disagree? There are a number of different ways to do this but you need to make sure that you operate within the data protection legislation in your own country, typically this means making sure that you have the recipients permission to contact them.

I think people are becoming more reticent about handing over their details because we are all struggling with the amount of information we are bombarded with. We therefore need to make sure that we offer something of real value in return for someone’s contact details and that we keep offering them value to retain their interest. It’s probably easiest to collect names and email addresses in return for an interesting e-book or a valuable report but then the only means we have of staying in touch is by email. It is very easy for someone to unsubscribe once they’ve taken advantage of your free offer.

A direct mail letter may get more attention than an email.

What we really need is someone’s mailing address. One way to get this is to follow up your free online product with an offer of a sample or a physical product, for example a CD or DVD or a book (but remember that you’ll have to pay postage so the lighter the better). Another option is to rent a mailing list. Check that the company you are using is reputable and that they collect data legally. Typically mailing lists are compiled from membership lists, magazine subscriptions, company information etc. so it should be quite easy to be very specific about the kind of contacts you want. For example you should be able to refine a request by, for example, location, job title, type and size of company or interests of an individual. So if you are very clear about your target market you should be able to purchase a mailing list of people who fit your specification. Think carefully about what data you would like to pay for. Given that it typically takes eight or more approaches to turn a prospect into a customer it can be a good idea to purchase a name and mailing address together with email and phone number so that you can vary the methods by which you follow up your approach.

A word of warning, a mailing list does not belong to you so you can’t add the names to your database unless you get a response from a name on the list and then you can add that person to your database. Mailing lists are typically sold for single or multiple use. If you buy for single use you can only mail that list once, it will be seeded with names to catch you out if you use it more often. A multiple use list will usually specify how many times you can use it over what period. I recommend buying a list for multiple use as you will rarely make a sale on your first contact.

Another way to build your list is to run a competition in which entries have to be accompanied by the data you want to collect. Do be careful to check that you are operating your competition legally. If you decide to sponsor a competition in a newspaper or magazine make sure that your agreement with the publication allows you to collect entrants’ contact details otherwise you may find that the data belongs to them.

ACTION: Decide on at least one action you will take to build your mailing list.

Crafting your message

Whether you are going to send direct mail letters to named individuals, brochures, fliers, postcards or any other print material there are a few things that you will need to consider when producing your material:

Focus on your prospect and their needs, If you really understand your target market you will be able to ‘speak their language’.

Use your headline to gain your prospect’s attention. A question will make them think. A question that helps them ‘feel the pain’ is even better.

This postcard has worked well for one of my clients.

Rub a bit of salt in the wound so that your prospect is really intrigued by how you can help them.

Show how your solution will help them.

Make sure your copy is benefit rich. Too many people focus on features not benefits. Turn your features into benefits: ‘We offer one hour delivery slots’ (feature) ‘so you don’t have to stay in all day waiting for us’ (benefit); ‘our trousers are teflon coated’ (feature) ‘so you don’t have to iron them’ (benefit). Make sure that the benefits you describe are the ones that are most important to your target audience.

Use testimonials and guarantees to make a purchase less risky.

Make sure you have a strong call to action preferably appearing at several points throughout your communication. Use action verbs: Call, visit, ring etc.

Consider offering a time limited incentive to take action now. Make this really clear.

Check that you use ‘you’ much more frequently than ‘we’. Customers are not interested in your history but in what you can do for them.

Resist the temptation to put your business name at the top of the page, a prospect isn’t interested in who you are until they are interested in what you can do for them.

If you are writing a letter use a P.S. to encourage your reader to take action now. The PS might be the only thing they read unless you can make them realise that they could be missing out if they don’t read the whole letter.

Long copy outperforms short in most tests. In other words longer letters allow you to work on your prospect’s emotions and make them want to take the action you want them to take. Remember people buy with their emotions far more frequently than they buy with logic.

Consider using photographs to grab attention and to appeal to your target. If you can find a photo to increase emotional connection so much the better. Take a lesson from charities who show the suffering that they are trying to relieve in order to persuade their targets to support them.

ACTION: Draft one letter, brochure or flier and test it on a small sample of your target market, if it works send it to more people, if it doesn’t change one thing and test again.

Networking

I can’t write a challenge about off line marketing without mentioning networking. There are plenty of people who will tell you that it doesn’t work but I’m not one of them. I believe that networking with your target market will work but it may take time. Networking is about building relationships so never go for the hard sell and be as generous as you can. This post is long enough without me writing reams on successful networking so I’m just going to direct you to some articles on my regular blog:

Next steps, should you choose to take them…

Share any insights or recommendations in the comments section here.

Join the conversation on Facebook to gain support from the 21 Day Challenge community (we’ll be looking at some of the benefits of social media later in the challenge but for now being active on this page and on Facebook can help boost the way people can find you on the Internet.)

Welcome to the third and final week of the challenge. By now you should have a plan and a budget and be ready to start selling. We’re going to spend the next five days looking at how you are going to find and win customers for your money making project.Today we’re going to start thinking about your promotional plan, you’ll probably want to add to this as we cover different marketing activities in the following days.

First things first.

There are a number of things we need to think about before you can develop your promotional plan. On Day 3 you identified your target market, how specific were you? Did you really drill down until you had a narrow but deep niche of potential customers? If not I suggest that you take another look. The more precise you can be the better. When you know exactly who your target customer is it is easier to find them and speak their language. Try and build a picture of your target in your mind’s eye, give her a name and a personality, then you’ll be able to have a conversation with her when you start promoting your offer.

On Day 5 you researched your competition. What did that tell you about where your offer is different? How is your offer better than your prospect’s? Why should customers buy from you in preference to your competitors? You need to understand this in order to communicate it to your prospects in a persuasive manner. Some people refer to this as your USP or Unique Selling Proposition, others as your points of difference.

What problems are you solving for your prospects? How do those problems make them feel? What would life be like for them if their problem was solved? These are the messages your prospects need to hear. This is what you should be promoting.

N.B. If you are doing this challenge to make money for a good cause you will need to find an emotional reason for your prospects to connect with that good cause. You might have to make them feel guilty, sympathetic or sad.

Remember people buy more with their emotions than with their reason!

ACTION: Be specific about your target market and the problems that you will be solving for them and identify how your solution differs from your competitors. Write this down.

Developing your promotional plan

Nobody can buy a product or service that they’ve never heard of so your promotional plan needs to be focused on raising awareness and desire in your target audience and then getting them to take action and buy.

Here’s a template for you to use to scope out your promotional plan. Be clear about which target market you want to sell to, if you have more than one you may wish to focus on different groups in different months. Set your self a clear objective for what you want to achieve each month. Your objectives might include:

a sales target

number of signups to your mailing list

number of downloads on a free product given in exchange for names and contact details

number of enquiries

number of hits on website

number of people booking a trial session

As you will see all of the objectives should be very specific and measurable, they should also be achievable and have a deadline. So set yourself a specific objective for each month. You might find this example helpful.

ACTION: Complete at least the first two columns on the marketing plan template. You might also like to start thinking about activities that you could do in the remaining columns but I’ll have more ideas for those in coming days.

A quick lesson in marketing.

Next steps, should you choose to take them…

Share any insights or recommendations in the comments section here.

Join the conversation on Facebook to gain support from the 21 Day Challenge community (we’ll be looking at some of the benefits of social media later in the challenge but for now being active on this page and on Facebook can help boost the way people can find you on the Internet.)

As we discussed yesterday the best way to make money is to find a target market with a problem that you could solve at a profit. If you struggled with that exercise then today’s activity might help you to identify other ways in which you could make money.

Ideas for businesses

If you are already in business then your best source for making more money is your existing customers. These are the people who already know, like and trust you.

Ask these people what else you could do to help them.

Review your existing customer’s purchase history & offer them a product/service that they haven’t bought before, perhaps as a special deal with something they buy regularly

Remind customers that it’s probably time to buy again. For example we have a water filter that needs changing every six months or so, if the supplier reminded us it was time for a new one we would probably buy from them rather than going back to Google!

Offer your existing customers a reward for introducing new customers when those people buy from you

Put your prices up!

Run an exclusive ‘customer and their friends’ event. Make it a party but use the opportunity to sell.

Consider joining an affiliate scheme to sell other people’s products which would appeal to your existing customers.

Introduce a new product or service based on your understanding of your current customers’ needs.

If you run a delivery scheme could you charge another business a service fee for delivering a product on their behalf? For example a greengrocer could deliver bread or flowers.

Bring in new customers

Every business needs new customers, do you have a regular marketing campaign to enable more people to hear about what you do? (We’ll be developing a marketing plan later in the challenge)

Use your shop window or exhibitions etc. to showcase your offer in a way to appeal to new customers

Explore new routes to market

Take your business out into new spaces. For example, Simon Osborne of Poisson fishmongers in Ealing is getting great results from a stall in Brentford market.

Look out for pop up shop opportunities, for example Barclay’s Bank in Hounslow is offering opportunities for businesses to display their wares in their banking halls

Should you have an Amazon or Ebay shop?

Are you selling online either through your own website or via Facebook. Facebook seems to work particularly well for craft type businesses.

Look for opportunities to collaborate with other businesses

Getting new ideas

Read relevant trade press, visit exhibitions and trade shows to make sure you are aware of new developments and opportunities in your industry (more about that tomorrow)

Borrow ideas you see on your travels especially when you are in a different environment

Watch some of the business TV shows such as Dragon’s Den or the Apprentice

Try some creative thinking techniques. Read the works of Edward de Bono or search ‘Creative thinking techniques’ on the internet.

Stimulate your creative thinking by coming up with a list of different uses for this plastic bottle. Try doing the exercise with other people to get even more ideas. I challenge you to get 50!

Ideas for new businesses

Do you have a skill or a hobby that you could make money from?

What problems frustrate you? Do other people have the same problems? Can you find a solution that other people would pay for?

What are other business owners struggling with? Could you offer a product or service to help them? (Book keeping, marketing, administration, deliveries, customer research are just a few ideas)

What new technologies are in development? Do these offer you an opportunity (think iPhone/iPad apps etc.)

Are there any infrastructure developments where you live that you could take advantage of?

What government initiatives could you exploit? (energy efficiency, recycling, employment support immediately come to mind)

Ideas for all

Have a clear out! Have a sale or sell on Ebay

Re-package your products and run a limited time offer on your existing range

Christmas is coming, how about putting together some gift packages, maybe in collaboration with other traders.

Sell your time by offering a service other people need: cleaning, ironing, gardening, baby-sitting, shopping etc. (This doesn’t have to be a long term option but can be a way of making cash whilst you get your big idea off the ground. A friend of mine did early morning cleaning when she was setting up her marketing business, it gave her immediate cash without encroaching on the time she needed to be available for her clients. Just make sure that you comply with relevant legislation)

Do you have a skill that can make you money? Have you noticed how many cooks are turning their hands to running supper clubs?

Write a blog, build your audience and then use it to generate an income from advertising. This is not easy but is working very well for some people.

ACTION: Read this article and then take some time out to let the ideas form. Go for a walk, do some gardening, go to the gym or just sit. Switch off interruptions. Put up the ‘Do not disturb sign’. Tell other people to go away! Just give yourself some thinking time. Write down your ideas today but don’t evaluate them, we’ll do that on Day 7 when your ideas have had time to develop.

Next steps, should you choose to take them…

Why not use the Facebook group or the comments section to share your ideas and seek input from other challengers.

If we are going to make money we are going to need people who are willing to buy from us so, before we can decide what to sell, we need to understand our target market and what their needs are. Ideally this challenge is about making money by doing something different to your normal business. It might be by reaching out to a new target market. It might be by selling a different product or service. It might be by leveraging your time and skills in a different way. It might be by doing something completely different.

Too often people start with a product or service that they want to sell rather than a problem that people want solving. You may be familiar with this song from the musical Oliver, it demonstrates the classic mistake.

Who will buy?

Ideally your target market will be one you know something about, perhaps one you fit into yourself. If you are a parent of a pre-schooler you will understand some of the challenges that other parents of young children have, you will also have connections with some of your prospects which will make it easier to test out your idea.

If you own a small business you will understand some of the issues other business owners face and you’ll probably have prospects in your network. If you are having problems supporting aged parents then there are probably others with the same problems so if you can find a solution others might be willing to pay for it. You get the idea.

ACTION: Decide what market you want to sell to.

Understanding your target.

So now you know what your market is you need to develop as much understanding of that market as you can. Here are some questions to help:

Are they male or female?

What age are they?

What is their marital status?

How many children do they have? What age are they?

Where do they live? Are they home owners or renters?

What do they do for a living?

Where do they work and how do they get there?

What do they do in their leisure time?

What do they read? Do they read in print or digitally?

What problems keep them awake at night? Can you solve those problems at an affordable price?

And if you are selling to a business audience here are a few more questions to consider:

ACTION: Decide what problem you can solve profitably and describe your target for that solution in detail using the questions above and any others that will help you build a clear picture.

Next steps, should you choose to take them…

When you have completed today’s task why not share your targets here?

Join the conversation on Facebook to gain support from the 21 Day Challenge community (we’ll be looking at some of the benefits of social media later in the challenge) but for now being active on this page and on Facebook can help boost the way people can find you on the Internet.